You may have heard advice that you should never let your puppy play tug of war,
play with toys with you because sometimes can lead your puppies to be aggressive
or dominant or even to bite. But in today's video,
I'm going to teach you that it's actually the opposite that playing with toys
can actually keep your puppy not to nip and bite at you and can actually teach
them to be a better listener. I'm Kayl McCann.
This is wild and crazy black lab puppy Piper. Welcome back to McCann dogs
How does this apply to nipping and biting?
Now a common mistake that people make when they're trying to use the toy to
prevent a puppy biting is they offer the toy to prevent the dog from
biting or if the dog bites. So she came over and she started to bite at my,
my shorts or at my arm. And I was to say, oh, here, bite this. Instead,
bite this instead. And I would give her a toy.
We have to remember the dogs learn within one second.
And if she starts to pair together,
biting on my shorts means I'm going to pull out a toy and play with her.
She might actually start nipping at me on purpose,
knowing that I'm going to grab a toy and offer it to her right away.
So be careful if you're using the toy that you're not inadvertently reinforcing
that biting by offering the toy right away.
What we need to do instead is address the nipping and biting.
And then once the dog is settled, we can then offer the toy. However.
There's a few exercises that we can do that can actually help.
Teach the dog that they need to be a bit more respectful to you.
That actually has nothing to do with biting whatsoever,
but actually works hand in hand with prevention.
First things first with the type of toy that you use is really important.
You want to use something that's going to be interactive between you and your
puppy. So this type of toy,
this McCann long fuzzy tug is not something that I would give Piper access to on
a regular basis.
This is something that we would use together so that she's understanding how to
behave with it. I also wouldn't want her to ingest this and hurt herself. Um,
the other thing you want to do is make sure that the texture is inviting to the
dog.
Something that's long and fluffy and plush and easy to sink their teeth into is
going to build a little bit more a drive versus something that's harder in
texture. Puppies are actually very texture sensitive.
So not every puppy likes the same thing.
Don't think we're going to have a problem with this particular puppy and this
toy she's pretty into it, but the type of toy is going to be really important.
I also love with puppies, the length of toy when it's nice and long,
it keeps your hands further away from the puppy.
Especially if you're going to get kids involved in this exercise. So length,
light and fluffy is going to be your best bet.
We actually have a lot of different types of toys on the McCann store or this
one in particular, you can find there,
we'll leave a link in the description below.
If you're interested in getting something like this for your pet,
with your puppy. Before I get into any of my control exercises,
I need to make sure that I can get the toy back from my puppy.
Because part of the problem with playing tug of war is if I'm not in control of
the game,
if she just jumps up and grabs the toy out of my hand without permission,
and if she grabs onto something and she refuses to let go,
I am putting her in a scenario where she's in charge of the situation.
So before I really get into the thick of things,
I need to first teach her that she's happy to give things up to me.
And one of the ways that we recommend you do that is by using a trade system.
Now I know that Piper really likes treats.
So I have a few little treats in my pocket and I'm going to start off before I
get into a big game of tug of war, teaching her to give me the toy.
When I asked her to simply by using a trade,
I have a couple of treats ready here. And as she's tugging on the toy,
I'm going to tell her out, and then I'm going to trade her for some treats out.
Yes. Now, as she's eating the food.
I'm going to sneak the toy away from her view. So she can't grab onto it again.
Good girl. Yes. Now I want to draw your attention to my timing.
I said out, and then I.
Offered her the trade and that's really important because I don't want her just
to see if I have food in my hand, before she lets go, it needs to be command.
Then use the food to help. So I'm going to go.
Ahead and try that again. Okay. Get, get it, get it.
Now I gave her permission to get it by wiggling the toy, telling her, get it.
I'll let her hold onto it for a second. Whoa.
Now to get her excited on just sort of keeping the toy lively and moving.
There we go. I got to give her a good little latch.
Before I get her to drop it again. There we go. Okay. Whoops.
Good girl. Now, when I want to try to trade her,
I'm going to stop engaging with the toy,
make it very boring and offer my trade out. Then show her the treats.
Out. Yes.
Good girl. And I'm.
Going to reward several times again. I snuck that toy away.
So what I don't want to do is eat the food and then grab the toy right away
before I have control.
Beautiful girl. Good. Excellent.
And you're good.
Repeat this process until your dog is dropping the toy faster and faster.
Now the first exercise I need to do with Piper is I need to teach her that it's
up to me as to whether she bites something with her mouth.
Now I'm not going to use my arm or my clothing to train her to do this.
This is where this toy is so handy. So if I have this toy present,
I do not want my dog to learn,
to jump up and try and grab it whenever she pleases.
So drill number one is teaching her to wait for permission until she's allowed
to use her mouth.
And by holding a little bit of self-control her reward is that she does in fact
get to bite on and do the things that she loves, which is tugging. Be crazy.
So what I'm going to do is I'm just going to move around here because we've been
sitting and talking a little bit and I'm just going to have her sit.
Your puppy could also.
Be standing and I'm just going to dangle the toy down a little bit. Good girl.
Now she's not trying to jump for it. So I'm going to reward. Okay, get it.
Very nice for not trying to grab at the toy is the fact that
she gets to have a little bit of tug. Good girl. Yes. Okay.
And try and get the toy back a little bit there. Good.
I'm going to try it again. Oops. Now she goes to jump for it.
I'm going to pull it away. Yes.
Good.
So that was awesome.
The third time I lowered the toy and she actually stopped herself,
she used self-control.
And then I could reward her by saying yes. And then allowing her to tug.
I'm going to try one more time here. Oh, we got some grounding.
Now. Some people are a little bit alarmed by growling. In this case,
Piper growling is just a sign of pure.
Enjoyment. There's no aggression. There's nothing to be worried about here.
She's just saying, whoa, this game is super fun. Oh, good girl. Ok,
I'm going to get the toy back. Good,
good. And I'm going to hold it out in front of her. Wow.
Now this time I'm going to move it around a little bit. Good girl. Yes. Okay.
Giving her permission to take a hold. So again,
it's hard to sometimes understand how this is going to help with biting,
but what I'm trying to do here is establish myself as a bit of a leader that she
needs to learn to have some patience and some manners around me so that she
doesn't just think she can jump up and grab things out of my hand,
she learns through playing this little game of tug how to have manners because
I'm in charge of when she starts. And of course, when she finishes the game.
So she's learning.
To use her mouth appropriately.
All with my control.
And I don't need to be mean and nasty and a drill Sergeant with this.
We can learn this thing by doing a fun little game together.
That she really enjoys. Good girl.
Now,
the next exercise that we're going to do with our toys is teach puppies about
being very careful with their mouth. Now,
one of the things that I often see people do when they have toys with puppies is
they often like to put their hands out to the side so that their hands are
nowhere near our dog's mouth or a puppy's mouth.
Or sometimes what they'll do is they'll dangle the toy way up here.
But sometimes it provokes the puppy even more than, than we're really intending.
I also want to make sure that if I'm going to give you an opportunity to play
with a toy,
I don't want to have to be abiding to my puppy about nipping and biting.
I want her to have the responsibility to know the difference between my toy and
my hands and puppies do know the difference between it.
She's not allowed to tug on the toy and then, you know,
sneak a little bite in on my hand. That's not allowed.
So I'm going to play a little game with her right now,
where I'm actually going to put my hands fairly close together on the toy.
And I want her to be very mindful to make sure that she's only grabbing toy,
never touching my hands. And if she does happen to grab my hand, instead,
I'm going to stop the game very abruptly so that she understands that must not
be allowed.
And then I'm going to try again so that she starts to learn what she can and
cannot do. So I'm going to open my hands a little farther away.
Yes. Good. So if she grabs on now as she's tugging,
I'm just going to put my hands a little closer.
Together. Good girl. Now, as long as she's careful,
I'm going to keep tugging. Good girl. Yes.
Excellent.
Good. Okay. I'm going to take a little break from that good girl.
And we're going to try it again.
I'm going to put my hands a little closer together. So not much space.
To get it, oh good girl, did you see how gentle she was?
That was so good.
So now I have my hands on either side of her mouth and I'm being very
careful that I don't get any teeth on my skin.
And she is actually trying so hard. Wow. Pipe, good girl.
Now, if she had.
Slipped her hand or, or her mouth over to my hand, I would simply stop the game.
You can take a hold of their collar. You could take the toy from them.
Stop them for a moment. Nice.
Try. Good girl. And then I could try it again. Get it here.
I want you to get this part, get it. Yes. There you go. Good girl.
Now I'm not recommending that you tug and always make your dog take the small
speed. A part of the toy. This toy is four feet long.
The benefit of having it so long as I can hold it wherever I need to.
This is simply an exercise to highlight your puppy being a little bit more
careful.
And then remember you want to build a lot of value for them giving the toy
up to you since you're in control. So I've just for this last little repetition.
I'm just going to go back to my little trade that we did at the beginning of the
video out. Very good girl. Now.
She was showing really good self control earlier.
So I might even not choose to put the toy behind my back this time.
I might even just reward her a couple of times for having the toy out and
learning, not to snatch at it, not to jump.
At me. Good girl. Excellent. So remember.
This is all about showing your puppy what to do rather than focusing on what
not to do.
If I build a lot of value for being obedient and learning to like listening and
she gets reinforced for good choices,
she's going to default to those behaviors much more quickly than if I give her a
lot of opportunity to be nipping and biting at me doing these toy exercises.
Isn't going to be the only thing that stops your dog from nipping and biting
you.
But it's important that you understand that if you use toys in your training,
it is not going to cause your dog to nip and bite or become aggressive.
It's how you use the toys and your training.
That's really going to make the difference. But remember,
this is just a small piece in your puppies trainings.
This is a small piece to teaching your dog, that you're a strong leader.
It's important that when you're utilizing toys in your training,
that you're not using it to, um, replace the nipping and biting,
but more so you're using it to teach your dog to have self control.
So you're going to implement this each and every day with your puppy,
but use it in a way that keeps you in the driver's seat,
but keeps things fun at the same time, you know,
stopping puppies from nipping and biting,
isn't solely based on disciplining them or telling them that they're bad.
It's about teaching them about how to be mindful in a bunch of different
scenarios.
We love teaching tug war because it's a non-confrontational way of teaching the
dog. I'm in charge. You're not, but Hey, this is a fun way to do it.
It also teaches the dog how to be mindful with their mouth so that they are a
little bit more careful when they're in and around your clothes or your kids or
your skin or whatever it might be.
So this is really important thing to implement, but remember,
it's a small piece of the big picture.
Now there are a lot of common mistakes that puppy owners make when it comes to
puppy biting. So to make sure that you don't make those same mistakes,
click that card right there and check out that video.
If you're dealing with some nipping and biting issues with your puppy at home,
and you'd like opportunity to get daily feedback from our instructors,
check out our online class called Puppy Essentials.
The link for that is in the description below. And on that note, I'm Kayl.
This is Piper, Happy Training.